Paul Schrader

Born: 1946-07-22

Paul Joseph Schrader (born July 22, 1946) is an American screenwriter, film director, and film critic. He first became widely known for writing the screenplay of Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976). He later continued his collaboration with Scorsese, writing or co-writing Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), and Bringing Out the Dead (1999). Schrader has also directed 24 films, including Blue Collar (1978), Hardcore (1979), American Gigolo (1980), Cat People (1982), Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985), Light Sleeper (1992), Affliction (1997), and First Reformed (2017); the latter earned him his first Academy Award nomination. Schrader's work frequently depicts troubled men struggling through an existential crisis that is then punctuated by a violent, cathartic event. Raised in a strict Calvinist family, Schrader attended Calvin College before electing to pursue film studies at UCLA on the encouragement of film critic Pauline Kael. He then worked as a film scholar and critic, publishing the book Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer (1972) before making the transition to screenwriting in 1974. The success of Taxi Driver in 1976 brought greater attention to his work, and Schrader began directing his own films beginning with Blue Collar (co-written with his brother, Leonard Schrader). His three most recent films have been described by Schrader as a loose trilogy: First Reformed (2017), The Card Counter (2021), and Master Gardener (2022). Description above from the Wikipedia article Paul Schrader, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.


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Dog Eat Dog

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Released: 2016-11-04

Carved from a lifetime of experience that runs the gamut from incarceration to liberation, Dog...

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Milius

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Released: 2013-03-09

The life story of ‘Zen Anarchist’ filmmaker John Milius, one of the most influential...

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Hitchcock/Truffaut

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Released: 2015-09-04

Filmmakers discuss the legacy of Alfred Hitchcock and the book “Hitchcock/Truffaut” (“Le cinéma...

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Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic

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Released: 2013-04-23

Mike Epps, Richard Pryor Jr. and others recount the culture-defining influence of Richard Pryor...

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Clapboard Jungle

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Released: 2020-03-26

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Film Noir: Bringing Darkness to Light

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Released: 2006-07-18

Film Noir burrows into the mind; it's disorienting, intriguing and enthralling. Noir brings us...

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Hollywood Mavericks

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Released: 1990-09-07

A documentary focusing on seventeen maverick directors who were not afraid to break the rules of...

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Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade

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Released: 2004-07-25

An account of the life and work of American film director Sam Peckinpah (1925-84), a tortured...

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Sex at 24 Frames Per Second

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Released: 2003-09-23

Directed by Kevin Burns, this documentary from Playboy Home Video examines the oftentimes tense...

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A Decade Under the Influence

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Released: 2003-04-25

A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of...

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Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex, Drugs and Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood

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Released: 2003-03-09

A look at 1970s Hollywood when it was known as New Hollywood, and the director was the star of...

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What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael

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Released: 2019-03-22

Pauline Kael (1919–2001) was undoubtedly one of the greatest names in film criticism. A...

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Making 'Taxi Driver'

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Released: 1999-06-14

A behind the scenes snapshot of the making of one of the greatest films ever made. Filled with...

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Tales from the Script

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Released: 2009-01-10

Shane Black ("Lethal Weapon"), John Carpenter ("Halloween"), Frank Darabont ("The Shawshank...

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Eames: The Architect and the Painter

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Released: 2011-11-18

The husband-and-wife team of Charles and Ray Eames were America's most influential and important...

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Raging Bull: Before the Fight

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Released: 2005-02-08

The first part of a four-part documentary about the production of "Raging Bull."

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Budd Boetticher: A Man Can Do That

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Released: 2005-12-02

Documentary about filmmaker Budd Boetticher.

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Influence And Appreciation: A Martin Scorsese Tribute

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Released: 2007-08-14

Filmmakers examine the work and influence of Martin Scorsese on modern cinema

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We Blew It

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Released: 2017-11-08

How did America change from Easy Rider into Donald Trump? What became of the dreams and utopias...

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Ken San

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Released: 2016-08-20

KEN SAN pieces together the puzzle of the life and legacy of Japan's mythical acting icon, Ken...

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Paul Schrader: Man in a Room

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Released: 2020-01-17

In the sixth installment of the Criterion Channel's Meet the Filmmakers series, director Alex...

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Picture of Europe

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Released: 1990-04-25

What makes European cinema so special? Find out in Paul Joyce’s feature-length documentary,...

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Preston Sturges: The Rise and Fall of an American Dreamer

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Released: 1990-07-02

Documentary about the life and work of film director Preston Sturges.

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God's Lonely Man

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Released: 2007-08-14

An examination of Travis's condition and situation in Taxi Driver

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The Book of Harth

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Released: 2022-08-10

A New York City-based conceptual artist embarks on a 20-year art project asking culturally...

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The Road to Bresson

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Released: 1984-05-13

A Dutch documentary about legendary French filmmaker Robert Bresson.

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Godard Made in USA

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Released: 2010-12-11

Documentary by Luc Lagier exploring Godard's career as a filmmaker, the production of Breathless...

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The Rules of Film Noir

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Released: 2009-08-22

Matthew Sweet explores his rules of 1940s and 50s American film noir thrillers.

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Talking with Ozu

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Released: 1993-11-27

A tribute to the legendary Japanese film director featuring the reflections of filmmakers...

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Untitled: New Blue

as Himself (uncredited)
Released: 1995-01-01

A short film directed by Paul Schrader following the story of a painting from Schrader's collection.

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The Beauty of Horror: Paul Schrader on The Comfort of Strangers

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Released: 2020-08-18

An interview with Paul Schrader on his 1990 film "The Comfort of Strangers"

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Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter

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First aired: 2015-08-02

Some of this year's most talked about talent open up about the challenges and triumphs of...

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The Last Movie Stars

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First aired: 2022-07-21

A celebration of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward’s iconic careers and decades-long partnership....

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Scene by Scene

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First aired: 1997-05-10

Mark Cousins invites film actors and directors to watch major scenes in their career to date,...

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The Story of Film: An Odyssey

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First aired: 2011-09-03

A worldwide guided tour of the greatest movies ever made and the story of international cinema...

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